Start and End with "The Word of the Lord"
God has impressed on our hearts that this is a season to prepare for rain. It’s one thing to ask for rain; it’s another to prepare in expectancy for it. This article explores a vital key in posturing our hearts and lives to receive the promises of God and the rain of heaven that brings refreshing, life and fruitfulness into our lives, our families and our communities.
God has called us to fruitfulness, but we need His rain in order to flourish. Looking into the life of Elijah in 2 Kings 17 and 18, we see principles on how to maneuver seasons of drought and famine, while pressing into the Lord for a season of outpouring. It starts and ends with “the word of the Lord.”
“And it came to pass after many days that the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the earth.””
I Kings 18:1 NKJV
When God desires to bring us into a new season and when He knows of trials ahead on our journey, it is important to have “the word of the Lord”. We don’t always have to understand the full meaning at first. Usually, it won’t become fully evident to us until after we have come into the full manifestation of the word.
Jesus gave His disciples “the word of the Lord” when He told them to wait in Jerusalem until they received the promise from the Father, and that they would receive power after the Holy Spirit would come upon them. The only thing they really understood was that they were to go into Jerusalem, hold on to “the word of the Lord” and pray for God to do His part by manifesting His word but they didn’t know what that manifestation would look like. Up until that point, no one had received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit except for Jesus when He was baptized. It wasn’t until after “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4) that they really began to understand that this experience was “the word of the Lord” given by Jesus coming to pass. Peter stood up to declare that the experience also corresponded with “the word of the Lord” prophesied by the prophet Joel. (reference)
God has specific plans for our lives; “of peace and not of evil, to give [us] a future and a hope” (an expected end) (Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV). This passage was “the word of the Lord” spoken by the prophet Jeremiah to give the compassionate and loving heart of God to a rebellious, sin-ridden devil-worshiping nation of Israel that they would have faith and hope in God who was promising to bring them out of captivity and restore them to their land of promise and the favor of the Lord. They resisted 23 years of warnings from Jeremiah, so God had no choice but to give them up to the lusts of their flesh, and bring them under the rule of the devils that they worshiped. The result was a 70-year season of captivity. Those that received “the word of the Lord” concerning “a future and a hope” and “an expected end” understood that He was speaking about having faith in a specific promise that would keep them through hard trials and dark times. Time would prove that “the word of the Lord” mixed with faith, coupled with the trials they lived through shaped a generation and prepared them to be those who were ready to take hold of “the word of the Lord” that had been promised.
If we are to walk out the fullness of the plans that God has for our lives and “finish [our races]” (2 Timothy 4:7), it is important that we understand the importance of hearing, engaging with, and following the “word of the Lord”. Otherwise we risk becoming “shipwrecked in the faith” (1 Timothy 1:19). God’s design is that we live in every season holding fast to “the word of the Lord” and that it would be what fuels the hope of our faith when trials come.
Paul gave Timothy specific instructions concerning his responsibility to faithfully steward specific prophecies spoken to and about Timothy concerning God’s plans and purposes for his life, saying “according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare” (I Timothy 1:18-19). Timothy was to fight every battle in faith holding onto prophetic words that were given specifically to him to help him engage God’s purposes, and not become shipwrecked in the faith. It wasn’t just good advice that Paul was giving him. It was a command that he committed to Timothy’s charge to keep him in the fullness of everything God desired to bring forth into the earth through the race Timothy would run.
When we go to battle we have declarations that flow from “the word of the Lord”. Had the disciples clung to the words that Jesus spoke to them saying “Let us cross over to the other side” in Mark 4:35, they would have approached the storm with hope fueling a faith that would have been able to break through the fear and lay hold of peace in the midst of the storm, knowing they would not perish. They may have even stood in the face of the torrential rains with declarations strengthened by “the word of the Lord” emboldened and empowered to quiet the storms.
In 2 Kings chapter 3 we see three kings who had banded together to battle against the Moabites: Jehoram (King of Israel), King Jehoshaphat (the leader of Judah), and the King of Edom. However, as they went to Moab by way of the wilderness of Edom they found that “there was no water for the army, nor for the animals that followed them” (II Kings 3:9). Jehoram was a wicked and unbelieving king who did not fear God cried out in despair, “Alas! For the Lord has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab” (II Kings 3:10). They did not have “the word of the Lord” to strengthen their faith, but Jehoshaphat did fear the Lord and he knew exactly what was needed. He cried out, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of the Lord by him?” His servant mentioned Elisha and King Jehoshaphat goes on to say, “The word of the Lord is with him”. (II Kings 3:12) They sought for Elisha and received “the word of the Lord,” mixing their faith with the word, the Lord manifested His provision. The “word of the Lord” came to them by way of Elisha saying, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Make this valley full of ditches.’ For thus says the Lord: ‘You shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’ And this is a simple matter in the sight of the Lord; He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand.” (II Kings 3:16-18)
The provision came, not only to rescue them from the need for water, but the hand of the Lord brought about the victory in battle. There is no doubt they would have been slaughtered or died in the wilderness without “the word of the Lord.”
It is interesting to note that before prophesying to the three kings, Elisha confronted the wicked King Jehoram, honored King Jehoshaphat, and most importantly called for a minstrel to worship the Lord. When we worship the Lord, we attune our hearts to His presence, and allow ourselves to access the heart of the Father. We must be careful to cultivate a prophetic lifestyle that captures the Father’s heart before prophesying “the word of the Lord.”
We most likely will not experience much prophetic ministry in or through our lives if we do not place a high value on “the word of the Lord.” King Jehoshaphat valued the prophet and understood the role of prophetic ministry to bring them through. In the same manner it is important that we, too, value prophetic ministry. In Acts 2:17, it says “your sons and your daughters shall prophesy”, speaking of the prophetic ministry that we all have access to. We see Paul and Barnabas gathering with a company of prophetic believers in Acts 13:2-3. “As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.”
Paul clearly instructed Timothy concerning the way to wage a victorious warfare, how to finish the race, and successfully bring forth the plans that God destined to be brought into the earth through his life, because he himself had experienced the Holy Spirit bringing him through trials and thrusting him into new seasons by first equipping him with “the word of the Lord.”
Do you value “the word of the Lord?” Is there a company of people, Kingdom family, that you surround yourself with that move in the prophetic streams of the Holy Spirit? Do you and your community of Kingdom family provide space to pursue the Lord like King Jehoshaphat, to acquire “the word of the Lord?” Once received, do you continue to seek the Lord concerning that word so that He can help you steward it well until all conditions are satisfied for the word to be manifested in your life? If not, that is one of the powerful aspects of the culture in our Fasting Encounters. On Monday night’s we host a zoom gathering inviting the Holy Spirit to move and we share with one another what God is saying concerning the season and let God move through and to each other for personal prophetic ministry. The invitation is yours!
“The word of the Lord” is your heritage to pursue and receive, faithfully steward, and partner with God to bring into the earth. Enjoy the journey and run on to finish your race!!